Wardrobe-trunk.



I 0. RANGNOW, WARDROBE TRUNK. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 17, 1909.

Patented Feb. 1,1910.

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OTTO RANGNOW, 0]? PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

WARDROBE-TRUNK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed; June 17, 1909.

Patented Feb. it, 191@. Serial No. 502,664..

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OTTO RANoNow, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in VVardrobe-Trunks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in a wardrobe trunk and the object of my i11- vention is to construct a wardrobe trunk so that it may be used as a practical wardrobe for retaining articles of clothing in the same manner as an ordinary wardrobe or closet is used; and a further object of my invention is to arrange the several parts of the interior of the wardrobe trunk, used for retaining the articles of clothing, so that the said parts and also the clothing may be readily and securely held in their proper places when it is desired to use the wardrobe trunk for travelingpurposes and by thus arranging the said parts of the wardrobe trunk the usual packing and unpacking is avoided, as in my improved wardrobe trunk any particular garment may be placed in the same or removed therefrom without disturbing the other garments and there are no heavy parts to be moved or lifted, thus making my improved wardrobe trunk particularly adapted for use by women when traveling and as a wardrobe suitable for every day use as a receptacle for retaining articles of clothing and the like; and a still further object of my invention is to simplify the construction and operation of the several parts of the wardrobe trunk and thereby reducing the cost of manufacturing the same to a minimum.

The above mentioned features, together with various other novel features of construction and arrangement of the parts, which will be more fully hereinafter de scribed, constitute my invention.

Tn the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved wardrobe trunk; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the wardrobe trunk, as shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the wardrobe trunk; Fig. i is a front elevation of the wardrobe trunk showing the door open; Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken on line 5-5 Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a vertical section on line 6-6 Fig. 4-; and, Fig. 7 is a partial vertical section through the lower portion of the wardrobe trunk, taken on line 7--7 Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawings, in which like references indicate like parts, 1 represents the wardrobe trunk body portion and 2 the door pivotally secured to the wardrobe trunk body by hinges 3. The body of the wardrobe trunk consists of the bottom 4, the back 5, the sides 6 and 7, the top 8 and the front portions 9 and 10.

The door 2 consists of the front or main portion 12, the top edge 13 and the side edge 14.

The front portion 12 of the door 2 is smaller than the front of the wardrobe trunk and when taken together with the front portions 9 and of the wardrobe trunk body complete the front of the same. Valancestrips 16 and 17 secured upon the door 2, cover the joints between the door and the front portions 9 and 10 of the wardrobe trunk body.

The top 8 and sides 7, of the wardrobe trunk body, are cut away to provide for the edges 13 and 14 of the door. The joints are covered by valance-strips 20 and 21, secured upon the door.

By making the door smaller than the front of the wardrobe trunk the door will swing clear of the fioor and additional strength is given to the wardrobe trunk body by the fact that a rigid rectangular end is formed at the bottom of the said body portion. The said lower portion of the wardrobe trunk body forms a receptacle for packing small articles.

The door is held in a closed position by the lock 22, dowel-pins 23, clasps 24, and the angle-iron 25, as shown in Fig. 3. The front of the door is held by a sliding bolt 26, which bolt is in turn held by a spring clasp 27.

The bottom 4 of the wardrobe trunk is provided with casters 28 for readily moving the wardrobe trunk when it is standing in an erect position. The wardrobe trunk is provided with corner-irons and protecting strips to strengthen the same and thereby making it portable and adapted for shipping as any ordinary trunk.

The top 8 of the wardrobe trunk body is provided with a hinged panel 30, which is secured to the top of the body portion of the wardrobe trunk by the hinges 31 and said panel is held in a closed position by the valance-strip 21 on the top edge of the door, which valance-strip overlaps the front edge of the said panel. when the door 2 is closed. The panel 30 is provided with valance-strips 35 to cover the joints between it and the top 8 of the wardrobe trunk.

hen the door 2 is open the panel 30 may be swung upon its hinges into the position shown in Fig. 6, which will make the interior of the wardrobe trunk body more readily accessible and the contents thereof visible through the space formed in the top 8 of the wardrobe trunk body for the panel 80.

A cross bar 82 is secured inside of and near the top of the wardrobe trunk body, upon which cross-bar 82 are suspended the garment hangers 38. The said cross-bar extends between the fixtures 34E secured against the sides of the wardrobe trunk body. Said cross-bar 32 is located in the center of the wardrobe trunk body and extends parallel with the front of the wardrobe trunk so that the garment hangers may be readily inserted edgewise in the wardrobe trunk and the hooks on the garment hangers may be placed over the cross-bar 32, which latter may be readily seen through the opening in the top of the wardrobe trunk body formed for the panel 30.

A locking-bar 39 is provided to hold the hooks of the garment hangers upon the cross-bar o3 so that said hooks cannot be disengaged without first removing the lockingbar. One end of said locking-bar is pivoted at the point 40 to the top 8 of the wardrobe trunk, and said locking-bar may be swung outwardly when it is desired to remove the garment hangers. The said locking-bar 39 is held in place above the cross-bar 32 by brackets 86, as shown in Fig. 6, which act as a stop to limit the backward movement of the locking-bar. A stop 41, secured on the panel 30, takes against the front of said locking-bar when said panel is closed and holds said locking-bar from swinging forward and also holds said locking-bar in a position immediately above the said crossbar 32, which will lock the hooks of the garment hangers so that they cannot become disengaged from the cross-bar 82. The said locking-bar 39 is adapted to swing upon the pivot point- 40 and the free end of said locking-bar will project out of the wardrobe trunk and form a convenient place to temporarily place the garment hangers when they are removed from the cross-bar 32.

The lower portion of the wardrobe trunk is constructed so as to form a receptacle below the line of the bottom of the door. The space thus formed in the lower portion of the wardrobe trunk is divided into two compartments 42 and 43 by the partition 44: which is secured to the bottom at and the front and back portions 10 and 5 of the wardrobe trunk, and said partition is made the proper height to form a support for the lids 4:5 and 46 covering said compartments 42 and 43 respectively. Said lids are also supported by cleats 4:7 secured to the inside of the wardrobe trunk.

A lining i9 is secured to the inner surfaces of the wardrobe trunk and said lining terminates at a point immediately above the top surface of the lids 4-5 and to, which said lids fit under the lower edge of said lining upon the back 5 and upon the left hand side 6 of the wardrobe trunk. To more securely hold the lid 45, a molding .30 is provided upon the side 6 and the back 5 under which molding said lid l5 fits. The said lid t?) may be readily withdrawn from under said molding and removed from the trunk or by first removing the smaller lid l6, the said lid 4t?) may be slid upon the front and back cleats -l7 to make the compartment 42 accessible.

The smaller lids it) rest upon said cleats t7 and its rear edge its under the lower edge of the lining 49. A finger hole 5 is provided in said lid 4-6 so that said lid may readily be removed from the wardrobe trunk. The lids 45 and 4-6 are prevented from sliding forward. toward the door, by the reinforcing piece 52 secured to the front portion 10 of the wardrobe trunk, as shown in Fig. (i. Said reinforcing piece 52 is of sufficientheight to allow the front edge of said lids to abut against the same. The said reinforcing piece 52 and a similar reinforcing piece 53 upon the right hand side 7 of the wardrobe trunk, as shown in Fig. 7, serves to strengthen the rectangular portion of the wardrobe trunk below the line of the opening for the door.

A removable cabinet 55, shown in Figs. l and (3 is provided for carrying small articles. Said cabinet is secured in the wardrobe trunk in the following manner: The cabinet is placed in the lower right hand side of the wardrobe trunk against the lining of the back 5 and the side "all 7, itrests upon the lid 4:0 and upon the edge of the lid 15, the weight being carried by the partition it and by the cleats 4:7 which sup port said lids. A guidingstrip 56, shown in Figs. 4: and 5, is secured upon the lid -15 and holds the cabinet against the right hand side of the wardrobe trunk. A strip 57, shown in Fig. 4-, is secured to the side T of the wardrobe trunk, located above the cabinet and serves to hold the cabinet down in its proper place upon the lids 4:5 and 46. it will be seen that as the said lids upon which said cabinet rests are above the line of the front portion 10 of the wardrobe trunk the cabinet may be readily drawn forward and removed from the wardrobe trunk.

lVhen the cabinet is in its place in the wardrobe trunk. it is held from sliding forward by the strip 58. secured on the door, which said strip fills the space between the front of the. cabinet and the door. A seelOO cameo 0nd strip 59 on the door is so located that when the door is closed said strip 59 will pass over the top of the front edge of the cabinet and form an additional means for holding said cabinet in place.

The strip 58 upon the door, when the latter is closed, passes over the front edges of the lids 4:5 and 46 and holds said lids down in their proper places.

Followers 60 and 61 are provided for holding the clothing upon the garment hangers against the sides of the wardrobe trunk by means of the straps (32. The follower 60 is the full length of the interior space in the body and the follower 61 is made shorter so as to pass over the top of the cabinet.

The operation of my improved wardrobe trunk is as follows: By opening the door, raising the panel 30, withdrawing the locking-bar and releasing the straps holding the followers the garments are all released and free to be removed from the wardrobe trunk by lifting the garment hangers off the crossbar. The free end of the locking-bar when drawn forward forms a convenient place to temporarily hang the garment hangers. When the door is open the drawers of the cabinet are accessible, or the cabinet may be entirely removed from the wardrobe trunk by simply sliding it forward. When the cabinet is removed the lid 46 may be removed so that the compartment l3 is accessible and the lid as may be removed or slid upon the cleats to make the compartment 42 accessible. When it is desired to prepare the wardrobe trunk for shipping purposes it is only necessary to slide the cabinet into its place, insert the followers which will divide the garments suspended upon the garment hangers and when the followers are strapped to the sides of the "ardrobe trunk the garments will be firmly held in place and cannot move. The garment hangers cannot become disengaged from the crossbar on account of being held by the locking-bar.

When the door is closed all the parts are securely locked in their proper positions and said parts cannot move no matter in what position the wardrobe trunk maybe placed.

Having thus described my invention I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a top edge formed on said door, a side edge formed on said door, said body having its top and one of its sides cut away to form a space for the said edges upon said door, a panel formed in the top of said body and said door adapted to hold said panel closed when said door is in the closed position.

2. A wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a top edge formed on said door, a. side edge formed on said door, said body having its top and one of its sides cut away to form a space for the said edges upon said door, a panel formed in the top of said body and hinged thereto, a cross-bar secured in said body, a lockingbar, means upon said panel to hold said locking bar adjacent to said cross-bar and said door adapted to hold said panel closed when said door is in the closed position.

3. A wardrobe trunk comprising a. body, a door, a rectangular lower portion in said body forming a receptacle, a removable lid to cover said receptacle, means secured in said. body to support said lid and a project ing strip upon the inside of said door to project over the front edge of said lid when the door is closed.

4. A wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a rectangular lower portion in said body forming a receptacle, a reinforcing piece secured to the inside of the front portion of said body, a cleat secured below the top edge of said reinforcing piece, a cleat on the back of said body, a lid supported by said cleats and the front edge of said lid abutting against the top edge of said reinforcing piece.

5. A. wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a rectangular lower portion in said body forming a receptacle below the bottom line of said door, a reinforcing piece secured to the inside of the front portion of said body and a reinforcing piece secured to the inside of the side of said body to strengthen the said body.

6. A wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a lining of wood veneering in said body, said body having a rectangular lower portion forming a receptacle below the bottom line of said door, alid to cover said receptacle formed in said body, said lining terminating on a line immediately above the top surface of said lid and adapted to hold down the rear edge of said lid and means located below said lid and secured in said body to support said lid.

7. A wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a ren'iovable cabinet, means for supporting said cabinet in said body on a plane above the opening formed in said body for said door and means for holding said cabinet against the side wall of said body and upon said supporting means.

8. A wardrobe. trunk comprising a body, a door, a removable cabinet adapted to be placed in. the lower portion of said body, a cleat on the side of said body projecting above said cabinet and a cleat upon said door projecting over said cabinet when said door is closed to hold said cabinet in a fixed position.

9. A wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a rectangular lower portion in said body forming a receptacle, a lid to cover said receptacle, means to support said lid, a guiding-strip 011 said lid, a cabinet adapted to rest on said lid and held against one side of the said body by said guiding-strip and means. for holding said cabinet down upon said lid.

10. A Wardrobe trunk comprising a body, a door, a rectangular lower portion in said body forming a receptacle, cleats secured to said body, lids supported by said cleats, a cabinet resting upon said lids, a partition in said receptacle resting upon the bottom of said body to take the Weight of said cabinet,

a guiding-strip on one of said lids to hold said cabinet against the side of said body and means for holding said cabinet down upon said lids.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

OTTO RANGNOW.

lVitnesses ARTHUR G. PENTON, M. R. CLEELAND. 

